


I Don't Believe in Fairytales

by Miraphina Atherton (mew_tsubaki)



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Eventual Romance, F/M, Post-War, cameos from Harry & Lav & Padma & Morag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2019-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:42:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21773158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mew_tsubaki/pseuds/Miraphina%20Atherton
Summary: Fay didn't know him, and she didn't know what the future held, but surely not all of this was meant to happen. She wanted to believe in magic again, just a bit.
Relationships: Fay Dunbar/Rolf Scamander





	I Don't Believe in Fairytales

**Author's Note:**

> The Harry Potter characters belong to J.K. Rowling, not to me. Read, review, and enjoy!

She hated that her parents had named her "Fay."

Fay Dunbar believed in the magic around her; she sort of had to believe. She was a witch, and she'd gone to Hogwarts, and now she held the form in her hand that would apply her for Auror training. Because that was what she'd always wanted to do.

But now she wasn't so sure anymore.

She and her best mate, Sally-Anne Perks, had just been 'round to St. Mungo's to check on their roommate, Lavender Brown. Just like Fay and Sally-Anne, Lavender and Parvati had become immediate friends, and the four of them had sort of clicked in their own way, with or without Hermione Granger. And Parvati had been there yesterday, in Lavender's room as some nurse changed the bandages on Lavender's neck again.

Lavender had been attacked by Fenrir Greyback, and magic had done little to heal what the werewolf's magic had done to harm. Lavender was groggy and weak these days, and she required a lot of help from Parvati. Sally-Anne took shifts with Parvati now so that the Indian girl could get some sleep, but Fay? Fay couldn't help. She didn't think she could handle being around the blood and pus and general disgust…

Fay shivered, her muted brown hair swinging into her face. If she couldn't handle that, then how could she hope to be an Auror? She might hurt someone and have to see worse things that what Lavender currently experienced.

The witch shivered again on the bench outside the Ministry. She felt so cold this first summer after the war—probably because a Dark taint still clung to this area. She glanced at the parchment in her hand and relaxed her grip, otherwise she was bound to put holes through it.

Someone sat on the other end of the bench roughly so that Fay's end jumped a bit. She turned and saw a red-haired man bent over his own piece of parchment. She stared at him until his looked her way.

He glanced between the bench and her. "Oh. Sorry. Did I bother you? I'll be done in a minute anyway, so don't mind me."

"Don't worry about it," Fay said as she stood up and shoved the application into her purse and left.

* * *

Three days later, Fay was still staring at the blank application. It was on her flat's countertop, and Sally-Anne groaned near the fridge.

"You haven't even put your name on it, Fay," she pointed out. She flipped one orange, plaited pigtail over her shoulder and opened the fridge door, grabbing a hunk of cheese. "Fay, you've been talking about becoming an Auror almost your whole life. Frankly, it's probably what our classmates remember you best for."

"But…I'm scared," the brunette whispered.

"By a piece of parchment?"

"By what it means." Fay narrowed her blue eyes at Sally-Anne's darker ones.

Sally-Anne shrugged. "This is what responsibility feels like, mate. We're bound to feel its weight sooner or later—we're technically adults now." When Fay didn't reply, Sally-Anne gave her friend a soft smile. "Hey, why don't you go try talking to someone in the department? Maybe Harry already knows a thing or two, considering they let him join the office without any formal training."

"Yeah, but Harry has experience I don't," Fay replied. She crossed her arms and stared at the form for another moment. Then she grabbed her cloak and stuck the form in her purse. "Oh, all right, I'll go ask someone actually _in_ the department."

"Thank you," Sally-Anne said with a grin as she was left to watch her friend's place.

* * *

Before, the Ministry of Magic hadn't looked so intimidating. Now…it rather did. And it didn't help that Fay got lost on her way to the Auror Office.

She'd been swept up into one of the lifts by the current of people in the Atrium. Then numerous buttons were pushed before she could protest. Fay settled into the back right corner until the lift arrived at the last floor that nearly emptied it out. That was when things got interesting.

"Hold it! Hold the lift!"

"Oh, no, you don't! Not today!"

Before Fay had the chance to say anything, a wizard ran into the lift, smacked a button, and huffed as his pursuer cursed at the two of them while fading out of sight. "Oh. Sorry. Did I bother you?" the man said.

Fay blinked and realized it was the same man from earlier in the week. She must've been gaping, for he gave her a tiny grin. "You."

"Oh, I remember you. The bench witch, right… Sorry about before, too. I tend to block out the rest of the world when I'm concentrating on something."

"Uh, yeah…" Fay shook her head in disbelief. She was surprised to have bumped into him again…although she wasn't sure she wanted to be seen with him, depending on why he was being chased in the Ministry.

He guessed her thoughts. "Oh, that?" he said, pointing to the floor above them. "Don't worry about that. That's just my old man. He's a little peeved with me at the moment. Job finding and all that." He whistled and glanced at the ceiling as though his father were glaring at him still. "Yeah, maybe not my best idea…"

Fay pulled a face. "…sorry. You are?"

"Oh, of course, where are my manners? I'm Rolf Scamander." Rolf held out his hand and heartily shook hers.

"Fay Dunbar," she replied.

His eyes brightened at her name. "That's quite a pretty name you've got."

"Thanks," she said, facing the line of buttons. Great. This man was strange, liked the name she hated, and—she sniffed and gagged—smelled like Hagrid's Care for Magical Creatures class. How had she missed that before? She merely thanked her lucky stars that she hadn't been as close to him on the bench before as she was now, in the lift. And, really, with the entire lift to themselves, did he _have_ to lean against the railing nearest to her?

"I like odd, pretty things," Rolf continued.

"Sorry, not interested," Fay interrupted, hoping she'd beaten him to the punchline. Though, admittedly, she felt somewhat flattered.

"Oh, that's not what I mean!" he amended when the lift stopped and Fay saw it was the floor with the Auror Office. She turned and politely waved…though she did take note of how blue his eyes became as his cheeks burned brightly red.

Harry was actually the first person she met in the department. "Fay! Hi, how are you? Everything all right?"

Her heart felt a little lighter, which she assumed must've been a positive thing. "Yes…I think so."

* * *

Talking to Harry turned out to be a good thing that became a better thing, as he introduced her to a few fellow Aurors and even the new Minister for Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt himself.

"Since he's now the Minister, he can't exactly run around with the Aurors anymore," Fay explained to Sally-Anne and Parvati the following week. The three friends were in the cafeteria of the hospital while Lavender slept, and Fay was catching the other two up on her recent goings-on. "But Shacklebolt… He's had so much experience in the field. He only shared a few stories in the time he had, but they were stunning."

"And?" Sally-Anne asked, nearly bouncing in her seat.

"And what? I spoke with some people, that's all."

"So you still haven't signed up yet?" Parvati asked, and she furrowed her brow.

Fay frowned. "No. To be honest…the stories were amazing. But they frightened me as much as encouraged me. I mean, we just ended a _war_ , for Godric's sake…"

"If anything, now's the time to join, then," the Indian witch said. "Think about it, Fay. There's so little crime right now—it's probably safest to train in these quiet times."

Though she didn't want to admit it, Fay thought Parvati's reasoning made sense. But she still hadn't the mental or emotional strength to sign those forms. At least, not yet.

"So, Aurors aside…," Sally-Anne began. She gave her best mate a smirk. "You've run into that Scamander bloke twice now?"

"That name sounds so familiar to me, I swear…," Parvati said, and she did seem to focus on placing the name.

"He's an oddball, to say the least," Fay told them. "I'm hoping I don't see him again. And he _smelled_."

Sally-Anne rolled her eyes. "Well—"

"OH!" Parvati's gasp grabbed their attention. "I sort of remember my sister telling me that there was a strange boy like Luna Lovegood in Ravenclaw… I think he was in Luna's year, too… 'Scamander' does ring a bell."

"And the creature thing going on?" Sally-Anne raised her eyebrows. "He's probably related to Newt Scamander." When the other two stared at her, she groaned. "Honestly, don't you two remember anything we did in school? You're starting to make me feel like Hermione…! Newt Scamander—he wrote _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_."

Fay shut her gaping mouth. Parvati gave her a sympathetic look and Sally-Anne continued to smirk, but there was no doubt about it. Fay was not only doubting her childhood dream, but she'd also befriended a whacko.

What else could go wrong in this post-war world?

* * *

"What's wrong? You look as if you've seen a ghost," Rolf said when Fay found herself on that bench outside the Ministry for the second time.

She hadn't been back to the Ministry for two weeks because Lavender had needed more attention lately and both Parvati and Sally-Anne had been drained. Fay had even taken a couple shifts to help Lavender out, despite her queasiness. But how could she not, with the way Sally-Anne and Parvati looked dead on their feet?

But, now that things had settled down, Fay had been forced to consider her own path once more. And Rolf sat down beside her. Well, at least he didn't smell too bad today.

"I haven't seen a ghost," the witch said as she pulled the application from her purse. "But I do keep running into you."

"I don't see it as a problem." He said it so simply and honestly that Fay smiled a bit. Innocence could be cute. "What's that you've got there?" Rolf asked, pointing to the parchment.

"Oh, this? Oh…just a ridiculous thought…" She pursed her lips. She'd never called her dream ridiculous before. But, now that she had…

"'Application for the Acquiremente of Auror Skilles,'" the wizard read aloud. "Ah, I see," he said, studying her. "So you want to be an Auror. Why's that a ridiculous thought?"

She thought it rude of him to ask such a thing when he barely knew her. "Oh, yeah? Well—why were you running from your father?" It slipped out, but she knew that she was curious, even if the thought had been pushed to the back of her mind recently.

Rolf clammed up, and he looked as though he might get up and leave, judging by the hard line of his clean-shaven jaw. Instead, he released a breath, pushed his shaggy red locks out of his eyes, and leaned his elbows on his knees. "I…am supposed to have my final year of schooling this fall."

Oh. So he really was that Scamander Parvati had mentioned, being a year younger than her.

"But I don't want to return, not after everything." He grimaced. "There's nothing left for me to learn. And I turn seventeen in only a little while, so it's not as though he'll be able to control me much longer. I want to travel the world, I want to see all kinds of magical beings—"

"So you really are related to Newt Scamander?" she cut in, a little stunned.

"Yeah. He's my great-grandfather." Rolf gave her a halfhearted smile. "But I don't think my dad likes that too much—or that I take after him."

"And that's what you want to do with your life? Tour the world and see dangerous things?"

"Well…yes. Why not? It's that kind of thing where anyone can do it, but—in a way—only I can do it." Rolf's blue eyes pierced right through her. "So why not?"

Fay was utterly stunned by the resolve of someone younger than her. And he had said all this to her without a tremble… She felt that he was more Gryffindor than she was. "But…what about all the risks?" Which sounded like a dumb thing to ask, considering the form in her hands.

Rolf stood and stretched before holding out a hand to her to help her up. But, even when she stood, he blinked and continued to stare at her, her hand overheating in his palm. "Life's too short not to take any risks."

* * *

Fay kept Rolf's words of wisdom to herself. She did so for two reasons: one, she was mulling them over and two, Sally-Anne likely would've have turned them into a big production if she knew.

The thing was… Rolf knew what he wanted from life, it seemed. He looked so young and so mature at once, and Fay found that appealing. And the way that he kept bumping into her, with a knowing smile on his face… Finally Fay felt thrilled and not tired or scared, two emotions she'd felt the most since leaving Hogwarts.

"This is not on purpose—it's entirely coincidental," he assured her when they saw each other for the umpteenth time. They'd ditched the Ministry for the temptation of some sweets in Diagon Alley, his treat.

"Well, of course it's not on purpose. I need to be there for when I finally sign my papers," Fay stated with a chuckle.

"And I need to keep trying to apply for that official title—Wizarding naturalist." Rolf beamed. "Merlin, it'll be great once I finally have my freedom."

"Where will you go first?"

"Dunno. I suppose I'll follow Great-Grandpa Newt for now…besides, it's safer to travel with someone."

Fay nodded.

As they walked along, Rolf watched her. "Are you ever going to sign that form?"

She paled. "I…don't know. I'm beginning to think that my hesitation is my answer." Her chuckle this time was nervous. "Besides, even if I do, I don't think now's the time. Lavender…she's not been too well lately…"

The next thing she knew, an arm wrapped around her shoulders. She looked at Rolf, who said, "You were shivering, Fay. Hey, she'll be fine, I'm sure."

Fay didn't know what scared her more—the fact that she took comfort from her "weirdo" or that she hadn't realized how badly she'd been trembling. She laughed it off and thanked him for his concern. "I'll be fine, too, I think."

Rolf didn't look very convinced, but he dropped the subject. "So I can't fill out that form for you, can I?" he asked, slipping his arm around her waist to reach into her purse.

"Hey! No, of course you can't! I've got to be the one to put my name on that paper." Her face was warm as he laughed, and they exited Diagon Alley…but she didn't remove his hand from her waist. She quite liked it there.

* * *

Too much time passed, in Fay's opinion, and it was looking iffy from her point of view. By next week, Rolf would either be back at school, where he was unhappy, or he'd be gone to Merlin-knew-where on his first global trek with his great-grandfather.

"Then go into training, distract yourself," Sally-Anne told her as she crashed on Fay's couch. Sally-Anne had huge bags under her eyes. "But can we talk about your almost-romance another day? I can't keep my eyes open any longer…"

Fay waited to see if Sally-Anne would say anything else, but she covered her friend in a light blanket when she heard a snore. She couldn't blame her, and Fay had to wonder if Parvati were asleep at Lavender's cot in that moment.

The brunette witch climbed into her bed and rummaged through her purse, pulling out the application once more. Godric, it was like some roadblock that grew every time she tried to find a way around it. It was intimidating and exciting at once—kind of like Rolf's odd personality. The thought made Fay smile, and she fell asleep with the parchment on her chest.

Her dreams kept shifting. First, she was unpacking in the dormitory with Sally-Anne and the others on their first night at Hogwarts. Then she was sitting on the bench with Rolf outside the Ministry, and the two of them were just smiling and laughing. After that, Fay was wrapping up her O.W.L.s, thinking of the day she would become an Auror. Then…then it was her first Hogsmeade trip in third year, and she, Sally-Anne, Parvati, and Lavender had gone to Honeydukes and to the Three Broomsticks together and had the best time of their lives.

Fay knew she missed those times, but it was nice holding on to them in her dreams. And it was nice to muse about the future in her dreams, too, because some of her dreams were filled with touches and glances and breaths that were stolen away by a blue-eyed, red-haired man who reminded Fay of a lion claiming his territory, which was so ridiculous because Rolf was still a boy, not a man. She smiled in her sleep.

But her dreams were rudely interrupted as someone pounded on the door. Fay hopped out of bed, though a bit groggy, and wound her way to the door as Sally-Anne sat up on the couch, a tad frightened.

When she opened the door, Parvati's sister, Padma, and a friend greeted her with disheartening expressions. "Fay, I'm—"

By then, Fay was wide awake, and she and Sally-Anne followed the others without a word.

* * *

Lavender went peacefully.

That was what Parvati said, at least. Parvati informed Fay and Sally-Anne that she'd been woken up by Lavender thrashing violently in her bed, and a Healer made it to the room in time to give her a sedative potion. She calmed and the Healer had waited with Parvati, but, instead of just being fine, Lavender had relaxed until her breathing was almost invisible. That was when she'd gripped Parvati's hand once before exhaling. She didn't inhale after that.

Things were a right mess. Lavender's parents were in the room with their daughter's body at the moment, and Padma was consoling her twin. Padma's friend, Morag, stood off to the side, listening to Sally-Anne's blubbering. Though Fay and Sally-Anne barely knew Morag, suddenly it felt like _that_ night again, the night where there weren't any House divisions because too many had been lost to the point that everything was a blur.

Fay closed her eyes tightly to stop crying. She couldn't believe Lavender was gone. The Healers said that Lavender's body had been fighting the magic of the werewolf's scratch and that it was a miracle she had made it this far. But none at St. Mungo's had been holding their breath; Bill Weasley's survival was a rare exception, and Lavender echoing his success after Greyback's attack had been unlikely to happen.

And it hadn't happened.

Fay took a couple deep breaths and ran a hand through her hair. She couldn't be here right now, listening to Sally-Anne's, Parvati's, and Lavender's mother's sobs. She had to be somewhere—anywhere but here.

She ended up returning to her place. Fay marched to her bedroom, saw the Auror application, and burst into tears. She wasted no time in searching for a quill and ink, Summoning them instead so that she could complete it faster than she completed her Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L. When she came to the section inquiring about her N.E.W.T.s, she hesitated—but her hesitation disappeared as she thought about how she and her friends had fought for Hogwarts back in May. That ought to be experience enough.

The witch Apparated to the Ministry of Magic and handed Harry the application herself. When he said nothing but gave her a look, she replied with a "It's about time we get this house in order." He took it and said he'd review it and get back to her as soon as possible.

With that weight off her shoulders and retribution weighing on her mind, Fay left the building and glared at the bright blue sky.

"You're back, I see."

She turned at the voice, knowing well who it was. She glared at him, her red eyes threatening to ache more as she fought back a new wave of tears. "She's gone."

Any sign of playfulness dropped from Rolf's countenance. "…oh. Merlin. I'm…I'm so sorry."

"I'll get him. I swear I will," Fay hissed through gritted teeth, averting her eyes. She couldn't look at Rolf as he drew near. "When I become an Auror, I'll be the best, better even than Harry and I'll nail Greyback, I swear I will."

"I know…shh, shh, I know…," Rolf cooed gently in her ear as he held her. His arms were gentle and loose, and she gripped him for dear life.

She hated crying, but it felt okay to do so in his arms. But, if he was here… Fay looked up at him. "You're going away, aren't you?"

His expression said it all. He looked pained. "I…signed myself out of a final year. I'm officially a Wizarding naturalist…"

She hiccupped. "That's—that's great, Rolf…" But her face crumpled again. "Oh, Merlin, I'm so sorry…"

"No, no, Fay, don't worry about it… Fay, luv…" Rolf cupped her face in his hands and kissed her, and then he kissed her tears away before hugging her tightly to him. "Revered Rowena, why did I have to decide to go away when you need me the most?"

"I don't… _need_ you…" Fay bit her bottom lip and stared into Rolf's deep blue eyes, which had regained some of their mischief.

"Ah, luv… Life's too short not to take any risks, you know."

And it was such a risk—daring to hold on to him any tighter, any longer, hoping he would stay or take her with him. But this wasn't magic as Fay had been taught to believe. Because if magic acted the way it did in fairytales, then she would've had strength from the beginning, Rolf wouldn't be going away, and Lavender would've beaten Greyback's attack.

Rolf led her to their bench and wrapped that strong, warm arm around her. "Fay…"

"I guess it's not bad, taking risks," Fay said abruptly, wiping her tears and nose. "I mean…it means something, doesn't it? It means that we're trying. Because nothing comes without trying."

He watched her and nodded. "That's true."

"And I'll try my hardest, for my friend." Fay coughed and cleared her throat. She looked at Rolf. "And, when you next see me, you'll have one adventure under your belt and I'll have nabbed myself a werewolf." She stood and bent and kissed him, hard and demanding and promising. She locked eyes with him, blue on blue.

She was planning on Rolf still liking odd, pretty things sometime from now, and she wouldn't let him forget it.

**Author's Note:**

> Well! This turn out unexpected… I honestly thought this would just be a drabble, but nope. The fic wrote itself again. XD I'm just sad that I ended up nixing Lav… ;_; I didn't think I would, but it happened. Sorry, Parvati… And I have to say that I love bringing in Fay and Sally-Anne, two of the littlest known HariPo charries, with my assumption that Sally-Anne was the ginger girl hanging with Fay in the PoA movie. -w- Anywho, I have a small idea for a fic set in this same universe… Oh, and who wouldn't love more FayRolf? :') Btw, this fic was partially inspired by the great song "[Wonderland](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayVuQLT00v0)" by Natalia Kills—AWESOME SONG!
> 
> Thanks reading, and please review!
> 
> -mew-tsubaki :}
> 
> 2017 note: Another old fic that is a bit charming, but…I'm not quite sure I want to reshape this 2012 story. I think I could improve upon this universe and do the characters as well as the ship justice in a sequel at some point… Hmm. Given me a lot to think about, tho…


End file.
